The best gravel rides around Herreruela De Oropesa

A bridge from another time, on a bend in the road, a marvel that you might think is a photo from northern Spain. It's worth taking a detour to go over it.

The Camino Real de Guadalupe by bike, especially the Oropesa – Alcañizo section: Approximate distance: 24–25 km (depending on the exact route). Terrain: rural tracks and roads, with some paved sections. Difficulty: Moderate, with no major mountain passes on this section. Surroundings: Toledo countryside, cereal fields, and pastures. Oropesa is notable for its castle and Renaissance palace (now a Parador).

The Count's Palace of Oropesa, located in the province of Toledo, is an architectural gem with a rich history and great heritage value. The Old Palace (or Doña Elvira Palace): in the Mudejar Gothic style, built in the 14th century. The New Palace: in the Renaissance style, built in the 15th century. It stands out for its original coffered ceiling, its balconies with the coat of arms of the Counts of Oropesa, and a large interior courtyard that was even used as a bullring. Together with the adjacent castle, it forms a complex declared a Historic-Artistic Monument in 1923. In 1931, it was incorporated into the National Parador Network, becoming the first Parador built on a historic building.

Using the power of moving water to drive a mill wheel is an ancient invention that dates back to pre-Christian times. Thanks to such a construction, human or animal muscle power could be easily replaced by a watercourse - natural or artificially created - in order to grind grain into corn, for example. There are essentially two different ways of driving watermills: Either the water simply hits the blades of the water wheel from below to set it in motion; or the water is guided above the wheel and falls onto the blades; this type of construction is more efficient due to natural gravity.

The Archbishop's Bridge is a municipality in Toledo that takes its name from its beautiful Gothic bridge with 11 arches that crosses the waters of the Tagus River. The town is famous for its ceramics, and together with Talavera de la Reina, it is the largest pottery center in Spain.

The Archbishop's Bridge is a magnificent example of medieval engineering. The bridge was built to allow trade and pilgrims to cross the Tagus River in 1380, but was further widened in the 18th century to allow passage after floods.

Another section of the picturesque Camino Real de Guadalupe, in this case joining Oropesa with the town of Alcañizo.

This great bridge with eleven eyes over the Tagus River gives its name to the Toledo town in which it is located, although the left bank of the river is already considered Cáceres and forms part of the municipality of Villar del Pedroso. It was built between 1383 and 1388 by order of the Archbishop of Toledo Pedro Tenorio.